1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to counters for fishing, hunting or camping.
2. Discussion of Relevant Prior Art
As any experienced outdoorsman knows, keeping track of the number of animals one has caught while fishing, hunting or otherwise collecting materials can be important. Aside from a general desire to know how many animals one has caught, often, there are legal limits on the number of animals a person may harvest. It can be difficult over a long period of time to accurately recall the number of animals caught and retained, especially when some are released and not retained. As more animals are caught and retained, manually counting becomes increasing difficult, as the animals, if alive, are moving.
While there are existing devices for counting fish, these devices are deficient in many ways. For instance, there are fish counters designed to count fish in a large-scale commercial setting like fish farming or bait stores. These counters are not designed to be portable and typically require that the fish be a fairly uniformed size since these systems often require the fish to swim or be moved past a detector in a tube or channel. These fish counting systems are relatively complex and are not designed to provide portable counting.
There are some portable fish counters that rely upon a mechanical trigger for the counting system. However, counting systems that demand that a fish be forced to trigger the counter by physical contact with a flap or paddle do not address the variety of sizes one may encounter while fishing and the slippery and agitated state of a fish when caught. A fish that is thrashing and trying to return to the water may take advantage of this physical contact to push itself and resist retention. An optical counter allows the fish to be dropped into the container without touching anything that could impede its downward movement.
There are fish counters designed to be placed on a cooler. However, these counters are not automatic and require that a button be pressed to account for each fish placed in the container. This system is inconvenient for the fisherman and open to inaccuracies if he or she forgets whether the button has been pushed.